Latest police weapons electric bullets and lights

LONDON (Reuters) - Quick-footed criminals hoping to avoid the debilitating shock of a police stun gun could soon be facing a more exacting foe -- the electric bullet.

Stun guns, like the Taser, fire small spears joined to the hand piece with wires. The spears discharge an electric shock and incapacitate the target, but such weapons have a limited range of up to about 10 meters (30 feet).

The United States Department of Homeland Security is seeking alternatives with broader uses like light lasers or guns firing electric bullets to combat all manner of felon.

"People encountered can range from aggressors who are hardened criminals to mentally disturbed teenagers ... from protesting crowds that include children and elderly, to street gangs," the Homeland Security Department, which is soliciting prototypes from industry, said on its Web Site.

According to the New Scientist magazine, several companies have put forward ideas, including the Piezer -- which can be fired from a 12-gauge shotgun up to 50 meters, shocking and stunning whoever it hits.

Another firm has suggested a dazzler which disorientates crowds with a series of bright lights.

link to PIEZER article